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<title>Lucubration (Prompt #16) by Post-Calamity Jane (GlassHeadcanon)</title>
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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26514568">Lucubration (Prompt #16)</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/GlassHeadcanon/pseuds/Post-Calamity%20Jane'>Post-Calamity Jane (GlassHeadcanon)</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>TDA: The "off-Global Cooldown Weave" Edition (FFXIV Write 2020) [10]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Final Fantasy XIV</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Fluff, Gen, Studying, Trust, Tumblr: FFXIVwrite, Tumblr: FFXIVwrite2020</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 03:33:45</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>374</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26514568</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/GlassHeadcanon/pseuds/Post-Calamity%20Jane</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>X’rhun’s apprentice falls asleep on him while studying together.<br/>(a companion story to the prior "Ache" from X’rhun’s POV)<br/>-<br/>lucubration<br/>lu•cu•bra•tion (ˌlu kyʊˈbreɪ ʃən)<br/>noun<br/>1. the practice of reading, writing, or studying at night, especially by artificial light<br/>2. the art or practice of writing learnedly<br/>3. a solemn literary work that is the product of laborious cogitation<br/>4. cogitation, study - attentive consideration and meditation<br/>5. a careful considering of a matter</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>TDA: The "off-Global Cooldown Weave" Edition (FFXIV Write 2020) [10]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1913404</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Lucubration (Prompt #16)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Beside you, she is leaning.<br/>
It begins with a subtle, downward tilt of the chin.<br/>
She rests her head in her hand.<br/>
She turns the pages much more slowly now.<br/>
Mayhap, you think, she is simply ruminating upon the particulars of each spell with greater concentration.<br/>
In the quiet of the room, her breathing deepens.<br/>
She jolts upright to prevent herself from falling forward onto her open tome.<br/>
You suggest then, that 'tis finally time to retire for the night.<br/>
You are, after all, far more accustomed to this than she.<br/>
But she is obstinate. Just resting her eyes, she insists.<br/>
In minutes, her weight has slowly shifted again.<br/>
This time, pressing upon your arm.<br/>
Gently, her head tilts onto your shoulder.<br/>
Her hair has fallen across her eyes, casting a shadow over her face.<br/>
You are afraid to move. <br/>
Afraid that the slightest shifting of your arm might wake her.<br/>
Afraid that the sound of a single turning page will be the thief that steals away the warmth of her body resting against yours.<br/>
And so you stay perfectly still. <br/>
In the dim of the soft, flickering light, you watch her chest rise and fall.<br/>
Her eyes are closed, her lips slightly parted.<br/>
You have a sudden urge to study her face, to learn its every nuanced expression, to commit it all to memory, while you still can.<br/>
She is so close now.<br/>
You’ve only but to turn your head, and you could bury your nose in her hair.<br/>
Breathe her in.<br/>
You could easily press your lips to her forehead.<br/>
And suddenly, you wish you knew a spell to prevent the logs in the fire from burning down, to delay the inevitable, rude intrusion of sunrise.<br/>
If only there were some incantation to keep you both there. <br/>
Right there. <br/>
And you realize then, that the warmth you feel, and what you covet, is not what you thought it was.<br/>
It is something else entirely.<br/>
Something you never knew you wanted.<br/>
Until now.<br/>
It is that she trusts you.<br/>
Wholly and completely.<br/>
And so you do not lift a finger or utter a word to prolong the flames. <br/>
You have all the warmth you need.<br/>
You close your eyes and fall asleep, smiling.</p>
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